Zambian water and power crisis deepens
A Barclays Africa research note on Wednesday highlighted the increasingly dire water and power situation in Zambia.
The Zambezi River Authority in Zambia has announced that the water level at the Kariba dam has continued to drop and reached 17 percent of capacity, compared with 53 percent during the corresponding period a year ago.
The water level is now at 477.95m above sea level and just 2.5m above the minimum operating level for hydro-electricity generation. With around 95 percent of the country’s electricity output being generated by hydro-facilities, the impact on electricity generation has been significant.
“This has resulted in massive power outages throughout the country. In particular, mines have been heavily impacted as the reduced electricity availability has come at a time when copper prices are at a six-and-a-half-year low,” Barclays Africa said, adding that several mines had already suspended operations, further contributing to the deteriorating economic conditions.
Zambia’s Energy Regulatory Board last week increased electricity prices by more than 200 percent to help raise funds of US$3.7bn in order to further expand electricity generation capacity.
File photo: Gallo images